Derek Landy - Kingdom of the Wicked

First published in Great Britain by

HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2012

Reissued in this edition in 2017

HarperCollins Children’s Books is a division of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd,

HarperCollins Publishers

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

The HarperCollins website address is:

www.harpercollins.co.uk

Skulduggery Pleasant rests his weary bones on the web at:

www.skulduggerypleasant.co.uk

Derek Landy blogs under duress at

www.dereklandy.blogspot.com

Text copyright © Derek Landy 2012

Illuminated letters copyright © Tom Percival 2012

Skulduggery Pleasant logo TMHarperCollins Publishers

Skulduggery Pleasant © TMDerek Landy

Cover design © blacksheep-uk.com

Cover illustration © Tom Percival

Derek Landy asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of the work.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780007480210

Ebook Edition © ISBN: 9780007480258

Version: 2017-05-25

This book is dedicated to the HarperCollins Children’s Books Publicity Department.

Publicists are an odd bunch. Part manager, part bodyguard, part servant, you’re only happy when you take over an author’s life completely. I would berate you for this, but I have yet to find a publicist who stops talking long enough for me to say anything.

To the Ireland branch, the legend that is Moira O’Reilly and the quiff that is Tony Purdue.

To the UK branch, both past and present (regrettably not future, though, but future publicists, feel free to accept this dedication as your own):

Emma Bradshaw – for that time I mocked your iPod choices. Oh how we/I laughed.

Catherine Ward – for that moment we shared, bonding over The Princess Bride. What do you mean you don’t remember it?

Tiffany McCall – you had ‘The Imperial March’ as your ringtone. How could we not get along?

Sam White – I like to think I played a part in why you married an Irishman. You’re welcome.

Mary Byrne – Gilmore Girls. Just … Gilmore Girls.

Geraldine Stroud – this is for that English/Polish dictionary you got me. It didn’t get me anywhere with the check-out girl, but at least you tried …

This is for all of you, without whom my life would be so much simpler. I’ve learned a lot from you, and I daresay you’ve learned a lot from me. Specifically, to never leave me on a train platform unattended. I will get on the wrong train.

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2012 Reissued in this edition in 2017 HarperCollins Children’s Books is a division of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF The HarperCollins website address is: www.harpercollins.co.uk Skulduggery Pleasant rests his weary bones on the web at: www.skulduggerypleasant.co.uk Derek Landy blogs under duress at www.dereklandy.blogspot.com Text copyright © Derek Landy 2012 Illuminated letters copyright © Tom Percival 2012 Skulduggery Pleasant logo TM HarperCollins Publishers Skulduggery Pleasant © TM Derek Landy Cover design © blacksheep-uk.com Cover illustration © Tom Percival Derek Landy asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of the work. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins. Source ISBN: 9780007480210 Ebook Edition © ISBN: 9780007480258 Version: 2017-05-25

Dedication This book is dedicated to the HarperCollins Children’s Books Publicity Department. Publicists are an odd bunch. Part manager, part bodyguard, part servant, you’re only happy when you take over an author’s life completely. I would berate you for this, but I have yet to find a publicist who stops talking long enough for me to say anything. To the Ireland branch, the legend that is Moira O’Reilly and the quiff that is Tony Purdue. To the UK branch, both past and present (regrettably not future, though, but future publicists, feel free to accept this dedication as your own): Emma Bradshaw – for that time I mocked your iPod choices. Oh how we/I laughed. Catherine Ward – for that moment we shared, bonding over The Princess Bride. What do you mean you don’t remember it? Tiffany McCall – you had ‘The Imperial March’ as your ringtone. How could we not get along? Sam White – I like to think I played a part in why you married an Irishman. You’re welcome. Mary Byrne – Gilmore Girls. Just … Gilmore Girls. Geraldine Stroud – this is for that English/Polish dictionary you got me. It didn’t get me anywhere with the check-out girl, but at least you tried … This is for all of you, without whom my life would be so much simpler. I’ve learned a lot from you, and I daresay you’ve learned a lot from me. Specifically, to never leave me on a train platform unattended. I will get on the wrong train.

Prologue

Chapter 1: The Butterfly and the Wolf

Chapter 2: The Werewolf of Dublin

Chapter 3: Councils Meet

Chapter 4: Eliza

Chapter 5: Early Night

Chapter 6: Back in the Sanctuary

Chapter 7: The Story of Walden D’Essai

Chapter 8: Gaol Time

Chapter 9: Hunted

Chapter 10: Nadir

Chapter 11: Scenes from a Coffee Shop

Chapter 12: The Bedrock of Investigation

Chapter 13: Manipulations

Chapter 14: Kray

Chapter 15: Killing Chris

Chapter 16: The Other Here

Chapter 17: Keeping the Demon Down

Chapter 18: A Jar With a View

Chapter 19: Jumping from Airplanes

Chapter 20: Lament’s Sorcerers

Chapter 21: Argeddion

Chapter 22: Conversations With My Killer

Chapter 23: The Plot

Chapter 24: Searching the Sanctuary

Chapter 25: The Inevitable Return of Fletcher Renn

Chapter 26: Poor Tommy Purcell

Chapter 27: Mayhem

Chapter 28: Her Secret Agenda

Chapter 29: All Becomes Clear

Chapter 30: The Experiment

Chapter 31: Carol

Chapter 32: Strangers in a Strange Land

Chapter 33: The Man in Black

Chapter 34: Inside the City

Chapter 35: Chipping Away

Chapter 36: The Old Man in Chains

Chapter 37: The Debrief